Conservative doubters invited to meeting with senior security expert in effort to allay fearsThe government made a last-ditch attempt on Monday to head off a potential Conservative rebellion over the Chinese telecoms provider Huawei, drafting in a security expert to try to reassure anxious MPs.Tories were invited to a meeting in parliament with Dr Ian Levy, the technical director of the National Cyber Security Centre, as party grandees try to amend a telecommunications bill in an effort to ensure the use of Huawei’s equipment in the UK’s 5G broadband network would be phased out by the end of 2022. Continue reading...

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Narrow victory is warning shot for No 10 which still has to legislate over Huawei’s 5G...

Narrow victory is warning shot for No 10 which still has to legislate over Huawei’s 5G roleThirty-eight Tory MPs have rebelled against the government in an unsuccessful attempt to force Boris Johnson to set out a timetable for excluding Huawei from future 5G phone networks.The government’s majority was cut to 24 as the rebels were defeated by 306 to 282 on an amendment put down by former Tory leader Iain Duncan Smith, amid concerns over the presence of a Chinese supplier at the heart of Britain’s digital infrastructure. Continue reading...

Group of eight rebels call for Huawei to be removed from UK networks by end of...

Group of eight rebels call for Huawei to be removed from UK networks by end of 2022A group of eight Conservative rebel MPs, including four former cabinet ministers, have put down an amendment calling on the government to eliminate all Huawei technology from the UK’s mobile phone networks by the end of 2022.Led by Sir Iain Duncan Smith, Owen Paterson, David Davis and Damian Green, the rebels hope to stage a show of strength – although it is not clear whether they can attract the 44 votes needed to threaten Boris Johnson’s majority. Continue reading...

Senior Tories consider trying to force Commons vote on tighter restrictions for Chinese firmAll today’s UK politics news – liveBoris Johnson is facing a possible rebellion over his decision to allow China’s Huawei to build part of Britain’s 5G infrastructure.Senior Tories are examining whether they could try to force a Commons vote on tightening restrictions on Huawei or reduce the cap on its market share further from 35% in the coming years. Continue reading...